horse with very fine legs- which boots/bandages to use?

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alfirules

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My new horse is a very fine boned thoroughbred. he has clean legs, which i hope will remain this way! he brushes slightly behind but not in front.

I think i would like to get him some like dressage wraps or bandages for school work and some other boots for jumping and hacking. (all on my shopping list for badminton, lol
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Just wondering what you would recommend really, i have used woof boots before on my pony but i am looking for something that will offer support, particularly for schooling.

has anyone used the equilibrium flatwork or training wraps? i thought they looked good, although they are very expensive!

I dont have much experience with exercise bandages, are they effective for schooling and do you use them without gamgee?
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thanks
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i have the equilibrium training wraps they are very good because 1 of mine has very fine legs to i recomend them they are good but as you said expencive but they are very good!!!
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no boots or bandages will offer support, yet they will offer protection from bangs, knocks, brushing etc.
i school in polo fleece bandages or boots. got premier equine boots and prolite boots, both which offer good protection and good value for money
maybe take a look at the premier equine boots, or stick with the tried and tested woof wear
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I have a fine fine tb who has to go out in boots after a serious injury last year.

For riding i put the equilibrium training wraps on her frount and just the flatwork wraps behind. I also use them for hacking but not if its very muddy as they are white hehe.

I use the 20.00 premier equine wraps for turning out as i have a few pairs so they have time to dry inbetween. I also have a 3rd pair to use them for hacking on muddy winter days and use the mark todd split boots behiind.

Woof wear i found an awful fit on her becuase her legs are so slender the strike pads were WAY to wide and the boots twisted.

I have been turning her out on her white equilibrium boots tho in the recent warmer weather to keep her legs cooler so plan to buy another set.

I cant be doing with bandages and if your not experienced with them may do more harm than good so stick with boots.
 
wow, you have quite a selection there, lol!

thanks, its good to hear what people recommend. i think i'll get some equilibrium wraps and some other brushing boots for hacking.
 
I primarily bandage and i use fleece polo bandages over eskadron climatex bandage wraps. Im not a huge fan of elasticated exercise bandages as you really need to get the tension correct.

Bandaging is quite good for flatwork, particularly when doing laterals or changes where there is a risk of the horse knocking its legs. In that sense, they provide a lot of protection and this is one reason you see them a lot in the dressage world.

You do need someone to show you how to bandage correctly if you're not used to it though. While it looks easy enough, poor bandaging can cause a lot of damage to legs so its not worth it.

I have the Equilibrium flatwork wraps which i use if im pushed for time or just going for a walk. Be aware they dont have much in the way of protection so i dont think id use them on a brusher tbh. Theres no real strike pad like you get with the woof wear boots. I use them on Jack sometimes for schooling, but he works to PSG and doesnt tend to get his legs in a knot so i dont have to worry too much about knocks.

Woof wear have a decent strike pad on them but as someone else mentioned, ive had issues with them on very gangly legged horses as the strike pad always seems too large for the dimension of the boot in the smaller sizes. I use these for turnout generally.

I used to use some Clarendon schooling boots on a very fine legged WB i had. She had nothing to her legs at all and these seemed to fit well and wear well.
 
Don't bother with Equilibrium Wraps for hind legs, they slip
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I also agree with peachesandcream, there is nothing yet on the market that will actually offer any support to the legs, so don't be fooled into buying something that says it will! Unless you are fully aware of this fact and like me think that the Equilibrium wraps look quite smart (plus they don't heat up the legs as much as other boots)
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My share horse is an Anglo Arab with fine legs. Usually all I have on him is over-reach boots (as he has rubbish feet and pulls shoes all the time), but at camp last week I booted him up as I didn't want to take him home to his owner covered in knocks and scrapes if he decided to be a prat! I put the Equilibrium Wraps on in front and Woof Club boots behind for schooling (we don't jump), and Prolites in front and the Woof boots again behind for hacking.
Seeing as there is no way you can offer support, and the Woof boots do tend to be the best for withstanding the test of time and heavy use, I would recommend just putting Woof boots on his hind legs. In front too if you really really want, although it sounds as if he doesn't need them. The Equilibrium Wraps are good for in front if you really want something on, as they look smart and don't heat the legs as much (I would never use polo bandages). For jumping I would say seeing as he doesn't brush, get some open tendon boots (unless you also do XC in which case something like Prolites if you can afford them would be good, as they have the tendon guard and protect from brushing as they are pretty tough). Then you can hack in your jumping boots.
As for bandages, 1) most of them heat the legs too much so I would suggest sticking with breathable wraps or getting some like those NEW Airflow bandages, 2) yes use gamgee/other padding underneath unless you use polo bandages or those bandages with built-in fleece or padding, 3) if you're not experienced with bandages, again I would say stick to the wraps because, as claire_and_cappelli said, you can easily do more harm than good with incorrectly applied bandages.
Hope I haven't waffled too much!
 
thanks, thats very useful information, i think i will just keep it fairly simple with woof wear boots, i think i was getting a bit fooled into the wraps, saying that they offered a lot of support etc. lol!

i did think the clarendon boots looked good. Quite alot of people seem all for the prolite boots so i might try and get a set of those.

anyone have anything to say about NEW boots. the fleece lined ones look nice, but i bought a pair of the cheap brushing boots for Alfie (my pony) and they rubbed him even though the fit was good and he walked lame in them so never used them after that!
 
Fleece-lined boots are NOT good - heat up the legs too much (excess heat can weaken the tendons...) unless you have a horse that will rub to pieces without fleece, don't go there.
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